Domain names are one of those things business owners usually don't give much thought to. A click here, a click there, and whatever is available is good enough for most. Big mistake.

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Consider this…

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A domain name is the first interaction your customer has with your business. Your domain shapes perception and drives customer behaviour before the click through. In a world where business digital marketing is growing more competitive by the day, first impressions are critical.

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This post breaks down 5 statistics that show exactly how domain names impact user engagement. As well as strategies you can act on to make sure you get it right.

Topics include:

• Domain names and user engagement.
• Domain names and trust.
• Domain names and brand recall.
• Which domain to choose?

Domain names for user engagement.

Let's do this…

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We all search online for products and services we need. When a search is made, we're presented with a list of options. In that list are multiple domain names vying for attention.

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Those domain names work hard to stand out to a potential customer. Depending on what that domain is, it can say a lot about your business.

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Professionally, easy to read and memorise domains build trust. Odd, hard to read, or confusing domains raise red flags.

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According to a survey by GoDaddy, roughly 80% of consumers avoid websites with oddly spelled domain names. That number increases with younger generations. 85% of Gen Z, 82% of Millennials.

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Domain names alone could cost a business 8 out of 10 potential customers with a misspelling or two. And that's bad, especially in competitive business digital marketing.

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For any business owner who is serious about buying domain names that actually work for their business, all this data should stop you in your tracks. Before a company goes out and spends a dime on ads or content, they need to find your perfect domain first. Without a good domain name that projects trust, other digital marketing efforts underperform.

Domain names for trust.

Trust drives business digital marketing success.

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Customers can't physically touch products before purchasing online. They have to rely on digital signals to assess if a website is legitimate or not. The domain name is one of the easiest signals for consumers to scan and pass judgement.

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Here's what helps:

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• Correctly spelled out words that align with the business name.
• Short domains of two words or less
• Domains that are easy to pronounce in conversations.

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And here's what kills it.

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• Misspelled words with swapped letters
• Domains that do not match the business name
• Long, complicated domains filled with hyphens and numbers

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The same study by GoDaddy found that 56% of customers consider misspelled words a major red flag. Another 55% of those surveyed lost trust when a domain name did not match the business name.

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Makes sense, doesn't it? If a business can't even get its own name right, why would a customer trust that business with their hard-earned cash?

Domain names for brand recall.

Brand recall is the ability of customers to remember a business without being prompted.

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If a customer needs a product or service, some brands instantly spring to mind. This top-of-mind awareness creates organic traffic and repeat sales. Domain names play a large part in creating this.

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Data from AtomRadar suggests that 77% of consumers find domain names important in evaluating brands online. Even more noteworthy, 47% of those surveyed ranked the memorability of a domain name as the most important quality.

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A memorable domain name means customers:

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• Can easily share the website with others word of mouth.
• More direct traffic to the site.
• Better brand recognition.

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Customers share the websites they can remember. Customers type in URLs they can spell correctly. And, customers return to brands they can easily remember.

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The relationship between domain names and business digital marketing is straightforward. Memorable domain names cut down on paid advertising spend. They create natural engagement loops that grow over time.

Domain names and generational differences.

Not all customers rate domains the same way.

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Older generations are much more forgiving of different domain selections than younger generations. And younger generations represent more and more of the total purchasing pie.

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Statistics point to a clear pattern here.

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• 39% of Gen Z
• 35% of Millennials
• 15% of Gen X and Boomers

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Have all stopped shopping at a business due to a domain name. When looking at younger generations, bad domains have the potential to take away large chunks of an audience before engagement begins.

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This makes perfect sense, as younger generations have grown up with the internet. They have developed a keener sense of judgement when it comes to unprofessional or sketchy websites.

Which domain name converts?

Ok, so what does a workable domain name look like for customer engagement?

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Simple domains. The highest converting domains are those that follow easily predicted patterns. That means domains that are easy to use and remember. Here's how.

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• Length is king. Shorter domains are easier to type, remember, and share. Two words or less is best for the majority of businesses.
• Spelling matters. Don't get too cute with the spelling. Creative, intentional misspellings may backfire. Customers will misspell a URL and land on a competitor's site instead.
• Match the brand. Domains should represent the business name exactly when possible. Matching all touchpoints builds consistency and recognition.
• Extensions matter. Newer gTLDs like .io and .ai have their place but nothing comes close to .coms in terms of trust. People are nearly 4x more likely to assume a domain ends in .com when they forget the extension.

The connection to business digital marketing.

Domain names don't exist on their own.

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Domains connect to every other part of a business digital marketing strategy. Email addresses, social profiles, ads, and content all reference the domain name.

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A strong domain name can make every other marketing activity better. Email addresses look professional. Social profiles look trustworthy. Ads feel like a safe click.

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A weak domain name drags down all efforts with it. Customers hesitate before opening emails from foreign addresses. They think twice before clicking on an ad. They second-guess sharing a link.

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The domain name becomes the common thread woven through all points of contact. The right domain name choice leads to compound benefits across the marketing spectrum.

Tying the topic together.

Domain names affect user engagement across the entire customer journey.

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Domain names shape first impressions in search results. Domains build or break trust before a visitor even arrives on a site. Domains create the foundation for whether a brand gets remembered or not. And, domain names directly affect whether younger customers engage with a business at all.

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The stats don't lie:

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• 80% of consumers avoid oddly spelled domains.
• 77% of consumers believe domain names are important in evaluating a brand online.
• 47% ranked memorability as the most important domain characteristic.

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For any business owner who is serious about driving digital marketing performance, domain name selection should be on the top of the list.

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The right domain name can build a foundation that powers engagement. The wrong one can build an invisible wall that costs you customers before they arrive.

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Choose smartly.